Today’s Scrip-Bit 8 March 2016 Psalm 77:13‏‏‏‏‏‏‏‏

08 Mar 2016 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Psalm 77:13.    Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary (holiness): who is so great a God as our God?

Oh friends, I do hope we all had strong beginnings to our new work week yesterday, and that those strong beginnings will continue into today, Tuesday, as we do the Lord’s bidding and grow in strength and maturity in Christ Jesus. 

I had a good day yesterday as I was out and about in the city having lunch with some friends whom I hadn’t seen before and visiting some older folks at home. But boy, was the sun ever hot, and I was doing this stuff between noon and early afternoon. 

The duchess believes that this is the hottest the sun has ever been since we began visiting Tobago some four years ago. Who knows though? The sun is supposed to be hot in these parts, and that’s why I came, isn’t it; for sunshine and saltwater? (smile) 

Anyway, today I want to share something called ‘No Strings Attached,’ from Gramps Schuller’s (Robert H. Schuller) Hours of Power Devotional. 

Listen up closely. ‘Christianity is a religion based on mercy. It is rooted in forgiveness. Of all the religions in the world, Christianity is the only belief system that accepts grace as the source of salvation. Every other religion is based on good works – work hard enough or be good enough and you will earn your salvation, your heaven, your Nirvana. 

Christianity alone says, ‘You can’t do it. No one is perfect. We all make mistakes. We all suffer from guilt and shame. We are all victims. But Jesus has died on the cross with these final words: ‘Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.’ (Luke 23:34). He has risen again. He has paid for my sins. He has paid for yours. The gift of salvation is free – no strings attached.’ 

Glory Hallelujah my fellow believers! And isn’t that the awesome and glorious truth. That’s why we can always loudly, proudly and truthfully say that OUR GOD IS THE GREATEST! 

And that provides the answer to our Bit: ‘Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary (holiness): who is so great a God as our God?’ 

Oh friends, I know I promised that yesterday would be the last day for that particular Bit, but if you were paying close attention, you’d have noticed that we only spoke about Christ’s birth, not his death, resurrection and ascension, as we had intended to. So obviously we couldn’t be finished. (smile) 

And in a few weeks’ time we’ll be coming up to those days of painful grief and then of joyous celebration, as we commemorate the Easter Season. And isn’t that a glorious season? 

It certainly it is, for though Jesus’ birth celebrated at Christmas time is huge. Easter is the fulfillment of God’s great promises, to provide a Messiah, to reconcile us to Himself and provide eternal salvation through His free offering of grace to all those who belief in His Son, Jesus Christ! Oh Glory to God my people! 

How can anyone be greater than Him when out of the goodness and LOVING-kindness of His heart, He sacrificed His One and Only Son so that we, His most precious, but also very disobedient and sinful creation could be righteously welcomed back into His holy fold? No other supposed deity can, or has ever done anything like that! 

As Gramps Schuller says above; salvation is a free gift of God, with no strings attached! All the sinner has to do is to believe in and on Jesus Christ! What could be simpler that that eh? NOTHING really! 

So when Good Friday rolls around, though it is filled with the pain and suffering and heartache endured by Jesus, we can still call it ‘Good’ because that is when our sins were paid for. 

It wasn’t good for Jesus, though He bore it with a stiff upper lip and all that, but it was surely good for us, because without Good Friday, we could not have had Easter Sunday, when He miraculously rose from the dead and with it offered the promise that all who die in Him, will again rise in Him! 

Oh what a great and LOVING God we serve and worship my people! THERE IS NONE OTHER LIKE HIM! That’s for sure. 

And what amazes me about the other faiths out there is that they either serve dead gods, or idols created by man’s hand. Now how can something I create be my god and do all sorts of stuff for me eh? It just doesn’t sound very logical. 

And please note too, has there ever been any other of the supposed gods who died and rose again from the dead? No way! Only our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ has ever done that! So why would I choose to worship any other God eh? 

And on another point of interest, has anybody else ever brought anybody back from the dead after they had been in the grave for four days? NO! 

But our Lord and Saviour Jesus did! Read the full account in John 11. He raised His friend Lazarus from the dead after he had been entombed for four days. All praise and glory to our great God! 

After praying to His heavenly Father, ‘he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus come forth. And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin (wrapped with a cloth). Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go.’ (John 11:43-44) 

Now tell me, who else has ever raised a human body buried for four days, and then raised Himself from the dead after being entombed for three days eh? 

NOBODY BUT THE LORD JESUS CHRIST! 

And we’ll definitely close this Bit (smile) with these true and immortal words of Jesus re resurrection and life. ‘Jesus said unto her (Lazarus’ sister Martha), I am the resurrection, and the life; he that believeth in me, though he were dead (may die), yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? (John 11:25-26) 

Now friends, that’s a question we must all ask ourselves, and hopefully, for all of us, the answer is a resounding YES! 

And finally, hear this verifying statement from the scholars. ’11:25. I am the resurrection is one of Jesus’ greatest “I am” statements, signifying His power to give eternal life.’ 

What more can I say eh? Nothing but I do hope that during these last few days the evidence I’ve provided has convinced us that the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is indeed the GREATEST and the ONE and ONLY TRUE and LIVING GOD!  Much LOVE!

…in the beginning…God created the heaven and the earth… (Gen.1:1) …that says it all…

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 8 March 2015 1 Corinthians 3:11

08 Mar 2015 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

1 Corinthians 3:11. For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

Well Friends, we’ve jumped forward an hour this Sunday morning to what we call Daylight Saving Time, having lost an hour a few months ago. Hn! If that jumping back and forth benefits anyone, is open to argument, but it does seem to have some negative effects on people’s sleep and their metabolism. And I don’t think that the countries who don’t follow this eccentric behaviour (smile) suffer any setbacks either. So why do we play this mental hopscotch every year eh?

I guess that only God and the powers that be understand it. The normal, run of the mill man certainly doesn’t. He just knows that twice a year it confuses his life. Now because of that, many of us will be late for work or other important appointments, including church, since we either didn’t know or didn’t remember that the clocks were going forward one hour this morning.

Hopefully though, not many of us will miss the glorious opportunity for worship, fellowship, praise and thanksgiving to Almighty God, and in return get His strength, wisdom and confidence to face this wicked world for another week.  And today I’m excited to share this good, no wonderful news about Christianity, from Gramp’s Schuller’s (Dr. Robert H. Schuller) Hour of Power Devotional. Now it’s something we all know, or should know, but we need to be reminded of it every so often.

Listen up: ‘Christianity is a religion based on mercy. It is rooted in forgiveness. Of all the religions in the world, Christianity is the only belief system that accepts grace as its source of salvation. Every other religion is based on good works – work hard enough or be good enough and you will earn your salvation, your heaven, your Nirvana. Christianity alone says, “You can’t do it. No one is perfect. We all make mistakes. We all suffer from guilt and shame. We are all victims.

But Jesus died on the cross with these final words: ‘Father forgive them, for they do not know what they do.’ (Luke 23:34) He has risen again. He has paid for my sins. He has paid for yours. The gift of salvation is free – no strings attached.”

Ah mih people, in light of all of that, how could I choose to be other than a Christian eh, a believer in Jesus Christ? It is certainly the best belief system in the world; spiritually, psychologically, philosophically and any other ‘ally’ you choose to bring up! (smile) It definitely beats all other belief systems in the way humans ought to live and interact with each other, and with their God.

So why are we so reluctant to embrace it eh? I really don’t know nuh. I just know that the wise people will accept and embrace it with joyful hearts, minds and souls, because that’s what it is designed to do. That’s why Bruh Paul proclaims in our Bit to the church at Corinth: ‘For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.’

And that’s indisputable, gospel truth my brethren! Jesus was the foundation for all mankind from day one!  

The prophet Isaiah warned Jerusalem thus: ‘Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.’ (Is.28:16)

Yes Friends, the Lord promised that foundation stone a long, long time before Jesus came to fulfill it. Meanwhile, in Psalm 118 – Thanksgiving for the Lord’s salvation, the psalmist said it this way: ‘I will praise thee: for thou hast heard (answered) me, and art become my salvation.

The stone which the builders refused (rejected) is become the head stone of the corner (chief cornerstone). This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvellous in our eyes. This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.’ (Ps.118:21-24)

Oh Friends, in light of Jesus’ sacrifice, of God’s wonderful grace, of offering salvation freely, that is what we need to do each and every day; rejoice and be glad that we are alive and kicking and have heaven and eternal life with Jesus to look forward to, no matter what happens here on earth. Does any other belief system have that ensconced in their promises? Obviously not! So why aren’t we more joyful than we are eh?

I think it just shows that we are not very true, but merely half-hearted believers. No other religion has the wonderful and fulfilled promises that ours does, but yet they rejoice in theirs more than we do in ours. Maybe it’s because we are like the church at Laodicea, to whom Jesus sent this message.

‘And unto the angel (messenger) of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen,  the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God (Christ); I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would (wish) thou wert (were) cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew (spit, vomit) thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods (have become wealthy), and have need of nothing: and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.’ (Rev.3:14-17)

Yes Friends, Laodicea was famous for its wealth, but that did not translate into a genuine and strong faith. Likewise our faith today is somewhat compromised by our wealth and freedom, which lead us to not trust and have as much faith in Jesus as we ought to.

Please, I implore us to get really serious about Jesus, so that those words to the Laodiceans no longer are applicable to us, for if we continue in our less than genuine faith, Jesus is liable to spit us out, eject us from His church. And that my brethren is the last thing we can afford to have happen to us. So let’s ponder it all and come to the wise conclusion to raise our faith in Jesus nuh, which is wisdom to the nth degree. Much LOVE!

…He that hath and ear…let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches…